Former Contract Employee for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Sentenced to 26 Months in Prison for Theft, Sale of Forms

Former Contract Employee for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Sentenced to 26 Months in Prison for Theft, Sale of Forms

NEWARK, NJ—A former contract employee for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) was sentenced today to 26 months in prison for stealing hundreds of immigration forms from the warehouse where he worked and selling them for ultimate use as part of a criminal enterprise, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Martin Trejo, 47, of Rialto, California, was previously convicted of one count of conspiracy to steal government property and transport it in interstate commerce and one count of transportation of stolen goods in interstate commerce. Trejo was convicted following a one-week trial before U.S. District Judge Faith S. Hochberg, who imposed the sentence today in Newark federal court.

According to documents filed in this case and the evidence at trial:

While working as a contract employee for USCIS, Trejo stole hundreds of immigration forms from the warehouse where he worked and sold them to a conspirator, who sold the forms to a criminal enterprise that used them to obtain hundreds of driver’s licenses for individuals living in New Jersey and other states illegally. In addition to the prison term, Judge Hochberg sentenced Trejo to serve two years of supervised release and fined him $4,000.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark; and agents of the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge Edward Nasiatka of the New York field office, with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anthony Moscato and David M. Eskew of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Criminal Division in Newark.